Hating on the haters

She is the talent behind the mother of all mummy blogs. So if you hate me, blame her – she started this whole mummy blogging business.

Heather has more than 1.5 million Twitter followers and, thanks to her decision to post her daily musings online, she is laughing all the way to the bank, boasting a multi-layered business empire, a couple of books and numerous awards.

I love her passion, her honesty, her engaging self-deprecation that endears her to her many fans.

I’m jealous of Heather. She gets to write whatever she likes. Sweet Jesus, she gets to tell people to "f*** off", right there in her blog.

“Please Mr Boss-Man... can I... just once...?”

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Heather does.

Of late Ms Armstrong has been managing a few traumatic life events. And in the thick of her personal trauma, she has dealt with offensive, intimidating comments on her blog.

Strangers threatening to have her children removed from her care because she is struggling emotionally after the breakdown of her marriage.

Haters are everywhere – especially in the dark little corners of cyberspace. Untouchable apparently and without fault themselves.

But the argument for free speech and the fact Heather is a public figure means she has to cop the criticism on the chin.

Heather has made her fortune sharing her life with the public. Is her communal communication an invitation for some members of the public to off load their vitriol?

I would assume despite the topic at hand, any discussion or blog thread, be it public or private, should still demand a level of respect.

That is assuming those doing the commenting place any value on respect of self or others... of course.

Artists have their work critiqued every day, but what boundaries, if any, govern the passing of judgement on a person’s private life made for public consumption?

Those posting the controversial comments might argue Heather, in her return serve, has failed in the giving of respect – stooping to the same inane level of abusive bile her critics have been condemned for.

I say – well done Heather.

No amount of public revelation will ever accurately divulge the level of private, unspoken pain that Heather is currently experiencing.

Those of us who share little pieces of ourselves and our lives in the public domain do so knowing there are many who revel in the possibility they might make light of this vulnerability.

The very ability to share part of ourselves might make us exposed in the sense that it innately opens us up to scrutiny and criticism.

However, this ability to share ourselves is courtesy of a healthy self-assurance. What others might think counts for little in comparison to how we view ourselves – unconventional (in an ordinary kind of way).

The haters therefore can rest assured Heather will place little importance on those spiteful comments, maintain her resolve and get on with the business of being a well-respected and very funny mummy/blogger.

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